Arcom takes legal action after comments from Éric Zemmour

The French audiovisual regulator, Arcom, announced on France Inter on Tuesday November 3 that it had taken legal action after comments on LCI, BFMTV and CNEWS by Éric Zemmour, Reconquête candidate at the Élysée, considered to call for discrimination, the day after October 17.

“As a public authority, we may be led to report comments to the public prosecutors when they appear to us to be in breach, for example of the laws relating to calls for discrimination. This was done by the Arcom services last week regarding comments made on different channels” by Éric Zemmour, declared on France Inter the president of the regulator, Martin Ajdari.

Such a referral “is not unprecedented but it is relatively rare,” he added. On October 18, the far-right presidential candidate spoke on LCI of "hordes of North African and African barbarians returning to the cities", on BFMTV of "Arab-Muslim scum" and on CNEWS called for "the remigration" of looters, that is to say the expulsion of foreigners. Without citing these passages, Martin Ajdari said that their “repetition” as well as their “proximity on different antennas” had “justified” a referral to justice.

Arcom “does not have to comment” on the responsibility of certain media

“As an audiovisual regulator, we do not have to comment” on the responsibility of certain media in the racist attack which took place in Yvelines, this belongs “to the political debate”, indicates Martin Ajdari. The mayor of Trappes, Ali Rabeh, notably accused media like CNews of having responsibility for this attack which left one dead, by giving too much space on their airwaves to speeches stigmatizing people of immigrant background.

“What we decide on,” explains Martin Ajdari, “is whether the programs broadcast by television and radio channels comply with their legal and conventional obligations.” He recognizes that “words have psychological, social, collective, democratic importance”. “From an audiovisual law point of view”, specifies the president of Arcom, “the words must simply respect a legal framework”. “When this framework is exceeded, we sanction. We do it regularly and we will do it again,” he says.

Sanctions taken “on a case-by-case basis”

These sanctions are taken “on a case-by-case basis on specific comments that have been made,” says Martin Ajdari. This is not done, specifies the president of Arcom, "on the denunciation of an atmosphere, an atmosphere which is encouraged or a psychological conditioning which does not fall at all within the scope of audiovisual regulation".